U Mumba defeated the Haryana Steelers 7–4 in the tie-breaker at the Thyagaraj Indoor Stadium in Delhi on Sunday, securing a vital victory that enabled them to advance to the top eight in PKL Season 12. The winning team’s high point total was Sandeep’s nine points.
Vinay’s successful raid gave the Steelers the first point, giving them a great start to the game. The Steelers took an early 1-2 lead following Jaideep’s outstanding tackle added another point shortly after. The squad then increased their lead thanks to a fantastic two-point raid by Shivam Patare. Additionally impressive was the Steelers’ defense, which consistently placed pressure on the U Mumba raiders.
The Steelers kept up their pace and took a decisive 3–10 lead after inflicting an early ALL OUT in the opening five minutes of play. However, U Mumba rallied with a Super Raid from Sandeep, bringing the score down to 7–10. The Steelers maintained control of the game in spite of that effort by dominating both the offensive and defense. The Haryana Steelers had a commanding 8–13 lead by the time the Strategic Time Out was called in the first half.
When the game continued, Vijay Kumar’s hard tackle gave U Mumba the first point, giving them a good start. However, Jaideep made another successful tackle to give his team momentum, and the Haryana Steelers swiftly reacted.
Over the next several minutes, both teams traded points while displaying intense mat play. With a spectacular Super Tackle, the Steelers then took back control and added two more points, increasing their advantage to 12–18.
But U Mumba put up a fierce fight. Leading the assault with a successful raid, Ajit Chouhan earned five points and reduced the deficit to 17-19 as his side executed an ALL OUT. U Mumba took a strong hold of the momentum and continued to apply pressure, eventually bringing the score level at 19-19.
With the scoreboard showing 20-20 at the completion of the first half, both sides were evenly matched.
U Mumba took an early lead when the second half started thanks to a brilliant raid from Sandeep. After Jaideep finished his High 5, Haryana Steelers equalized the score at 22–22 with a Super Tackle, giving U Mumba a brief two-point lead.
The Steelers reclaimed the lead 23–24 a few minutes later with another Super Tackle, but U Mumba rallied to tie the score and then seized the lead once more with a spectacular tackle from Rinku. The Steelers quickly reclaimed a one-point lead with another Super Tackle. After a heated and highly contested period, the Haryana Steelers had a three-point lead and were ahead 25-28 when the Strategic Time Out was called.
Parvesh Bhainswal’s tackle provided U Mumba the first point when play resumed, reducing the deficit to 26-28. The Haryana Steelers retaliated right away after Rahul’s stunning tackle gave them the advantage again. Following a strong Super Raid by Sandeep, which placed U Mumba ahead 31–30, they executed an ALL OUT to increase their lead to 34–31.
Sahil Narwal’s tackle even the score as the Steelers rallied with less than a minute remaining. However, U Mumba scored once more, giving them a late lead and two points thanks to a vital Super Tackle.
The Steelers remained steadfast. Sahil Narwal made another outstanding tackle to square the score at 37-37, pushing the game into a tie-breaker after Mayank Saini successfully raided for a point. The Haryana Steelers took an early lead in the tie-breaker after winning the first point in their initial attack.
To equalize the score, U Mumba swiftly retaliated with a successful raid of their own. Soon after, the Steelers took the lead again, but U Mumba rallied to tie the score.
At a critical juncture, when the score was deadlocked at 3-3, U Mumba’s defense came through with a spectacular tackle to take a 4-3 lead. Sathish Kannan scored three crucial points and increased U Mumba’s lead to 7-3 shortly afterward with a game-changing Super Raid. That turned out to be the deciding factor, as U Mumba maintained composure and won the tie-breaker handily.
